1. Poltava and the Geopolitics of Western Eurasia.
- Author
-
LEDONNE, JOHN
- Subjects
BATTLE of Poltava, Ukraine, 1709 ,OTTOMAN Empire ,NORTHERN War, 1700-1721 ,RUSSO-Turkish Wars, 1676-1878 ,COSSACKS ,INTERNATIONAL relations ,HISTORY - Abstract
The article examines the geopolitical consequences of Russia's victory over Sweden and its king, Charles II, in the 1709 Battle of Poltava, Ukraine, during the Great Northern War in Western Eurasia. Focus is given to the relations between the regions' four main powers: Sweden, Russia, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the Ottoman Empire. It is argued that Russian Emperor Peter I's victory ended the hegemony established by Swedish King Gustav Adolf and Polish King Sigismund III in the region in the preceding century. Also discussed is the decreased military power of the Ukrainian Cossacks, the Russo-Turkish War, and decreased Swedish power in the Baltic Sea.
- Published
- 2009